The author last quoted speaks again:-- "The emperor, whose eagle glance traced plans of campaign for his fleets as for his armies, was wearied by these unexpected reverses.

He turned his eyes from the one field of battle in which fortune was faithless to him, and decided to pursue England elsewhere than upon the seas; he undertook to rebuild his navy, but without giving it any part in the struggle which became more furious than ever....

Nevertheless, far from slackening, the activity of our dock-yards redoubled.

Every year ships-of-the-line were either laid down or added to the fleet.
Venice and Genoa, under his control, saw their old splendors rise again, and from the shores of the Elbe to the head of the Adriatic all the ports of the continent emulously seconded the creative thought of the emperor.

Numerous squadrons were assembled in the Scheldt, in Brest Roads, and in Toulon....